Applying to Harvard

It seems like getting your child into a decent school for Kindergarten is remarkably similar to applying to Harvard these days.

Ace has a screening appointment coming up this week for the only school I will be very happy with him attending. It’s the best public school around and I certainly can’t afford private school, so if I don’t want him going to the other school near us (which is a smaller version of the one in Dangerous Minds, if any of you remember that movie) he must get in to this one. He screens on Friday so please keep him in your prayers.

Below are some of the things his Preschool teacher told me they screen them on:

01. Counting to 30 and identifying each number

02. Knowing all of the alphabet, both upper and lowercase, and identifying each letter and it’s sound.

10. His social security number (just kidding–but I wouldn’t be surprised!)

11. Months (and identify their names)

12. Days of the week (and identify their names)

13. Draw a picture and explain it. They’re also observed with other children and asked to identify different pictures, objects, etc.

I’ve been practicing with him every now and then but I don’t want to overdo it and stress him out. I’m stressed enough for the both of us.

The good news is the school is remarkable. I am so impressed with what I’ve seen of the faculty and campus so far. The curriculum is unbelievable, I can’t believe what they’re teaching them even from Kindergarten! They work with computers everyday and will start learning about web design and video production. I’ll be honest it’s a little scary and part of me wants to keep him coloring and writing ABC’s for awhile longer but I have to accept that one day he will have to make it in society and he needs to be as prepared as possible.

Watching them grow up is so difficult, I never thought I would have so much trouble letting go of so many things! Each new step forward he takes makes my responsibility as his mother that much greater; I must remember the importance of prayer at all times.

Keep us in your prayers! I’ll keep you posted!

UPDATE: ACE WAS ACCEPTED INTO HARVARD! YIPEE!! Thank you all for your prayers! We are very excited to be a part of such an incredible school!

I will pray for your son and the school situation. I am a teacher and so I believe what you are saying, and it is important. My prayer for yours and my own children (3rd and 9th grades) were (and probably will be in the future, since I have plenty of my own ideas) earned with many tears. God really got my attention concerning education with my daughter. My prayer is this: Lord, you know this child, you know how he/she needs to be educated, please help me to see Your will being done through all this, and may all be done to your honor and glory. Please help me to trust you. Lord, I believe, help my unbelief. From Margie in Tennessee

Christ is Risen!Sylvia, it’s Alexis from the PenPal.I’m sad that he needs to know all that – just to get to kindergarten? What will the teach him in kindergarten? Geometry? The pressure the states and state testing put on schools these days is outrageous. Kids can’t be kids anymore. School is not fun anymore because of the pressure they put on the kids to do well on these standardized tests. There’s no ceiling for the tests either. It’s OK if they don’t know EVERYTHING. My Milan was in kg last year and I was amazed at the stuff they were “teaching” him. I doubt if they even “taught” it all – they showed it to them and then went on to somethingg else – no child left behing is crap and for the government, no one else.I’m sure Ace is a very very smart child and he’ll be just fine. Lean on the Lord.Don’t stress. Let him be a kid!

Anonymous-I don’t think there’s a problem in his being a kid, he’ll just be an educated one I do think it’s a bit much but this is the way things are nowadays, whether we like it or not. Trust me if you saw my other option you’d be praying for him to get accepted into this school too!

Move to Portland, OR and go to Agia Sophia Academy:) We struggle to keep Pavlos at our local Orthodox School and next year Petros, godwilling, will be in the preschool parttime. We live in the portland public schools and they are not an option at all. If I had to send him to a public school, I would have him live with my parents and go to their neighborhood school. It is so hard because we want what is best for our children- a safe place to learn.

Let us know how it goes! I really enjoy your blog and appreciate the great ideas you share. Have you ever considered homeschooling your child? I think you’d be great at it; it would allow you to be with him, and allow you to let him learn and grow at his own pace. Reading Dr. Raymond Moore’s Better Late Than Early really helped me to see that, especially with boys, it can be best not to push the academics too early. Anyway, just some thoughts, and forgive me if I’m out of line in suggesting it. I so enjoy teaching my kindergarten aged son at home and am amazed at how naturally the learning happens, plus, I know who and what his influences are. And we do have lots of social events too. Do let us know how the interview goes!

Rebeca-I have considered homeschooling but I don’t have a blessing for it. Trust me I’ve thought about it A LOT! However I know that if I was given a blessing to send him to school things will work out. Keep us in your prayers!

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